Determining aircraft orientation

ABSTRACT

Devices, systems, and methods for determining aircraft orientation are described herein. One device includes instructions executable to determine a subsection of a rendering of a portion of an airport, wherein the subsection is associated with a particular stand of the airport, and wherein the subsection includes a plurality of ground travel pathways, determine a first subset of the plurality of pathways, a second subset of the plurality of pathways, and a third subset of the plurality of pathways, track a location of an outbound aircraft within the subsection of the rendering, determine an orientation of the aircraft according to a first set of rules responsive to a determination that the location of the aircraft is within the first or second subset of the plurality of pathways, and determine the orientation of the aircraft according to a second set of rules responsive to a determination that the location of the aircraft is within the third subset of the plurality of pathways.

PRIORITY INFORMATION

This application is a Divisional of U.S. application Ser. No.15/972,634, filed May 7, 2018, the contents of which are incorporatedherein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to devices, methods, and systems fordetermining aircraft orientation.

BACKGROUND

In various airports, aircraft (e.g., airplanes) can undergo a pushback.A pushback can include, for example, the aircraft being moved (e.g.,pushed and/or pulled) from a stand (e.g., terminal gate) using externalpower. A pushback can include the aircraft being aligned towards aportion of the airport leading to a designated runway prior todeparture, for instance. Aircraft pushback can be accomplished usingvarious devices (e.g., tractors, tugs, trucks, etc.) and/or airportpersonnel (e.g., air traffic controller(s) (ATCs), ground crew(s),etc.).

Various applications may utilize determined positions, orientations,and/or velocities of aircraft in an airport. For instance, automatedrouting applications and/or conflict prevention applications may utilizesuch information to control aircraft movement through the airport.

General positions, orientations, and/or velocities of aircraft can beestimated using radar. However, during pushback and/or periods whereaircraft are moving at relatively low speeds, for instance, radarinformation may be incomplete and/or noisy. Previous approaches mayutilize one or more noise filtering algorithms (e.g., Kalman filteringalgorithms) to estimate aircraft position, orientation, and/or velocity.Such approaches may be insufficient, particularly with regard todetermining aircraft orientation as they may be unable to determinewhether an aircraft is moving backward (e.g., being pushed back) orforward (e.g., upon completion of pushback). An incorrectly determinedaircraft orientation may lead to invalid taxi instructions, delays,confusion, stress, repetition, safety issues, and/or invalidautomatically-determined routes.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a rendering of a portion of an airport in accordancewith one or more embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 illustrates the rendering of the portion of the airport where anaircraft is tracked beginning at a first position in accordance with oneor more embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 illustrates the rendering of the portion of the airport where anaircraft is tracked beginning at a second position in accordance withone or more embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 illustrates the rendering of the portion of the airport where anaircraft is tracked beginning at a third position in accordance with oneor more embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5 illustrates a system associated with determining aircraftorientation in accordance with one or more embodiments of the presentdisclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Devices, methods, and systems for determining aircraft orientation aredescribed herein. For example, one or more embodiments includedetermining a subsection of a rendering of a portion of an airport,wherein the subsection is associated with a particular stand of theairport, and wherein the subsection includes a plurality of groundtravel pathways, determining a first subset of the plurality ofpathways, a second subset of the plurality of pathways, and a thirdsubset of the plurality of pathways, tracking a location of an outboundaircraft within the subsection of the rendering, determining anorientation of the aircraft according to a first set of rules responsiveto a determination that the location of the aircraft is within the firstor second subset of the plurality of pathways, and determining theorientation of the aircraft according to a second set of rulesresponsive to a determination that the location of the aircraft iswithin the third subset of the plurality of pathways.

Determining aircraft orientation in accordance with one or moreembodiments of the present disclosure can improve the functioning ofcomputing devices configured to execute routing applications and/orconflict prevention applications to control aircraft movement throughthe airport. Where previous approaches may be insufficient, particularlywith regard to determining aircraft orientation, embodiments herein canreduce invalid taxi instructions, delays, confusion, stress, safetyissues, and/or invalid automatically-determined routes by determining anorientation of an aircraft while it is being pushed back and/or while itis moving at low speed through an airport.

As used herein, a “pushback” can refer to the aircraft being moved(e.g., pushed and/or pulled) from a stand using external power. Apushback can include the aircraft being aligned towards a taxiwayleading to a designated runway prior to departure, for instance.Aircraft pushback can be accomplished using various devices (e.g.,tractors, tugs, trucks, etc.) and/or airport personnel (e.g., airtraffic controller(s) (ATCs), ground crew(s), etc.).

As previously discussed, previous approaches using radar may be unableto determine whether a moving aircraft is moving backward or whether itis moving forward. Stated differently, previous approaches may be unableto determine whether an aircraft is being pushed back or whether apushback of the aircraft has been completed and the aircraft is taxiingforward. Approaches that use Kalman filtering techniques may beinsufficient when the velocity and/or position of an aircraft aredetermined to be below uncertainty limits, for instance. Theseapproaches may especially suffer from uncertainty in cases wheremultiple taxiway and/or runway centerlines are connected and/or curved.

In one example, an incorrectly determined orientation can lead to acomputer-determined route (e.g., determined via a routing algorithm)given backwards. Such a route can be meaningless in some cases, costlyin some cases, and dangerous in some cases. An orientation determinedusing embodiments herein can allow the provision of a valid route,which, as previously discussed, results in tangible monetary and safetybenefits. These benefits include, but are not limited to, increases inthroughput and flights arriving and/or departing on time, and reductionsin confusion, stress, and/or repetition.

Embodiments of the present disclosure can divide an airport intosubsections (e.g., two-dimensional polygons). Each subsection can beassociated with a respective stand. Within each subsection, portions ofground travel pathways (e.g., apron centerlines) can be categorized intoa plurality of groups. In some embodiments, groups can be defined basedon their distance from the stand, though embodiments herein are not solimited. When an aircraft is determined to be on a portion of thesubsection falling in a particular group, embodiments of the presentdisclosure can determine an orientation of the aircraft based, at leastin part, on a set of rules particular to that group.

Embodiments of the present disclosure can be implemented using existinginstallations (e.g., radar systems and/or devices) at airports.Additionally, embodiments of the present disclosure can be used toautomate existing pushback strategies and/or provide variousnotifications to airport personnel, for instance.

In the following detailed description, reference is made to theaccompanying drawings that form a part hereof. The drawings show by wayof illustration how one or more embodiments of the disclosure may bepracticed.

These embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those ofordinary skill in the art to practice one or more embodiments of thisdisclosure. It is to be understood that other embodiments may beutilized and that process changes may be made without departing from thescope of the present disclosure.

As will be appreciated, elements shown in the various embodiments hereincan be added, exchanged, combined, and/or eliminated so as to provide anumber of additional embodiments of the present disclosure. Theproportion and the relative scale of the elements provided in thefigures are intended to illustrate the embodiments of the presentdisclosure and should not be taken in a limiting sense.

The figures herein follow a numbering convention in which the firstdigit or digits correspond to the drawing figure number and theremaining digits identify an element or component in the drawing.Similar elements or components between different figures may beidentified by the use of similar digits.

As used herein, “a” or “a number of” something can refer to one or moresuch things. For example, “a number of polygons” can refer to one ormore polygons.

FIG. 1 illustrates a rendering 100 of a portion of an airport inaccordance with one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. Insome embodiments, the rendering 100 can be an aerial rendering (e.g., abird's-eye view). For example, the rendering 100 can be a digitizedimage, an aerial photograph, and/or other rendering(s). The particularexample of the rendering 100 is included for example purposes and is notintended to be taken in a limiting sense. The rendering 100 can bereceived at a computing device (e.g., the computing device 518 discussedbelow in connection with FIG. 5 ). In some embodiments, the rendering100 can be received from a building information model (BIM) associatedwith the airport.

The rendering 100 can depict area(s) of the airport that aircraft can beparked and/or travel along the ground. For instance, rendering 100 candepict a portion of an apron of the airport and/or a portion of a tarmacof the airport. The rendering 100 can depict an area of the airportassociated with a stand (e.g., hardstand) 102. The stand 102 can be alocation of the airport where aircraft are parked, loaded, unloaded,maintained, de-iced, washed, etc.

The rendering 100 can include a plurality of ground travel pathways 103.As referred to herein, ground travel pathways 103 are portions of anairport provided to allow aircraft ground travel. Ground travel pathways103 can include aprons, taxi lanes, taxiways, tarmacs, etc. Groundtravel pathways 103 can be formed of one or more travel surfacesincluding concrete, tarmac, asphalt, and/or gravel, for instance. Groundtravel pathways 103 are not limited to a particular length, width,and/or shape. In some embodiments, a ground travel pathway may besubstantially straight (e.g., a line). In some embodiments, a groundtravel pathway may be curved. Ground travel pathways 103 may referparticularly to centerlines of ground travel pathways.

Embodiments of the present disclosure can define a subsection 110 of therendering 100. The subsection 110 is sometimes referred to herein as a“polygon” but it is noted that embodiments of the present disclosure donot limit the subsection 110 to a polygon. For purposes of clarity,however, “subsection 110” and “polygon 110” are both interchangeablyreferred to herein.

In some embodiments, the polygon 110 can be defined responsive to inputsreceived via an interface. For example, a user can draw the polygonusing an input device such as a mouse and/or touchscreen display. Insome embodiments the polygon 110 can be defined without user input. Insome embodiments, the polygon 110 can be determined based on historicalpushback data associated with the stand 102. In some embodiments, thepolygon 110 can be determined based on a pushback limit associated withthe stand 102. For instance, an airport may enforce rules dictating ageographical limit of aircraft pushback which may be visualized by thepolygon 110. It is to be appreciated that the polygon 110 shown in FIG.1 is associated with the stand 102. A different stand can be associatedwith a different polygon. A shape and/or size of the polygon can differdepending on the location of the stand, the layout of the airport,and/or a type of the stand, among other things.

Embodiments of the present disclosure can categorize ground travelpathways 103 within the polygon 110 into a plurality of subsets. Theexample illustrated in FIG. 1 shows three subsets, though embodiments ofthe present disclosure are not limited to a particular number. Forinstance, as shown in FIG. 1 , a first subset 104 (sometimes referred toherein as “stand pathway 104”) can include one or more pathwaysconnected to and/or adjacent to the stand 104 (e.g., extending from apoint of the stand 104); a third subset 108 (sometimes referred toherein as “taxi pathway 108”) can include one or more pathways exceedinga threshold distance from the stand 104; and a second subset 106(sometimes referred to herein as “stand extended pathway 106”) caninclude one or more pathways connecting one or more of the standpathways 104 to one or more of the taxi pathways 108.

Because radar used at airports may be intermittent and/or ineffective,an outbound aircraft's location can be acquired when it is located on apathway of the first subset 104, the second subset 106, or the thirdsubset 108. Embodiments of the present disclosure can utilize differentrules, depending on the subset where the aircraft is located, todetermine whether it is being pushed back or whether pushback has beencompleted. Such determination can allow automated routing systems and/orconflict prevention systems to function properly.

FIG. 2 illustrates the rendering 200 of the portion of the airport wherean aircraft is tracked beginning at a first position 212 in accordancewith one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. In the exampleillustrated in FIG. 2 , a tracked path of an aircraft, indicated by aplurality of stars, is acquired at a first location 212. The stars shownin FIG. 2 can represent different locations of the aircraft determinedby a radar system over a period of time. In some embodiments, thelocations can be determined according to a particular interval (e.g.,every five seconds), though embodiments herein are not so limited.

As shown in FIG. 2 , the first position 212 is located within (e.g.,maps to) the stand pathway 204. Responsive to a determination that thefirst position 212 of the aircraft is located within the stand pathway204, embodiments of the present disclosure can apply a particular (e.g.,first) set of rules to determine whether a pushback of the aircraft isunderway or whether it is completed.

For instance, as they are tracked, the different locations along thetracked path can be stored (e.g., in a memory analogous to the memory520, described below in connection with FIG. 5 ). In some embodiments,an initial orientation (e.g., a forward orientation) can be determinedand/or assigned responsive to a determination that a distance traveledby the aircraft exceeds an initial distance threshold. In someembodiments, a check can be performed to determine whether the aircraftis outbound.

If the aircraft is outbound, embodiments herein can determine whether asubsequent tracked location of the aircraft is within the polygon 210.According to the first set of rules, a determination can be made that apushback of the aircraft is complete responsive to a determination thatthe aircraft is subsequently located on the taxi pathway 208 and thesubsequent tracked location is unchanged for a particular period oftime. Such a time period can be selected, for instance, to correspond toa length of time needed for a pushback vehicle to detach from theaircraft. Such a time period can be selected, for instance, based on atype of the aircraft. Stated differently, embodiments herein can changea pushback status associated with the aircraft to “complete” responsiveto the subsequent tracked location of the aircraft being within thepolygon 210 and the subsequent tracked location of the aircraft mappingto the taxi pathway 208 and being unchanged for a particular period oftime. In such cases, the initial orientation can be retained.

Otherwise, a pushback status associated with the aircraft can be changedto “in-progress” indicating that the aircraft is still being pushedback. Stated differently, if the subsequent tracked location maps toeither the stand pathway 204 or the stand extended pathway 206, and/orif the location of the aircraft is changing (e.g., the aircraft ismoving), the initial orientation can be changed to indicate that theaircraft is still moving in reverse while being pushed back.

If the aircraft's movement is not determined to be outbound, the initialorientation can be retained, and the pushback status can be changed to“completed.” If the subsequent tracked location is outside the polygon210, the initial orientation can be retained, and the pushback statuscan be changed to “completed.”

FIG. 3 illustrates the rendering 300 of the portion of the airport wherean aircraft is tracked beginning at a second position 314 in accordancewith one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. In the exampleillustrated in FIG. 3 , a tracked path of an aircraft, indicated by aplurality of stars, is acquired at a second location 314. As above, thestars shown in FIG. 3 can represent different locations of the aircraftdetermined by a radar system over a period of time.

As shown in FIG. 3 , the second position 314 is located within (e.g.,maps to) the stand extended pathway 306. Responsive to a determinationthat the second position 314 of the aircraft is located within the standextended pathway 306, embodiments of the present disclosure can applythe first set of rules, in a manner analogous to that discussed above,to determine whether a pushback of the aircraft is underway or whetherit is completed.

For instance, as they are tracked, the different locations along thetracked path can be stored in memory. In some embodiments, an initialorientation (e.g., a forward orientation) can be determined and/orassigned responsive to a determination that a distance traveled by theaircraft exceeds an initial distance threshold. In some embodiments, acheck can be performed to determine whether the aircraft is outbound.

If the aircraft is outbound, embodiments herein can determine whether asubsequent tracked location of the aircraft is within the polygon 310.According to the first set of rules, a determination can be made that apushback of the aircraft is complete responsive to a determination thatthe aircraft is subsequently located on the taxi pathway 308 and thesubsequent tracked location is unchanged for a particular period oftime. Such a time period can be selected, for instance, to correspond toa length of time needed for a pushback vehicle to detach from theaircraft. Such a time period can be selected, for instance, based on atype of the aircraft. Stated differently, embodiments herein can changea pushback status associated with the aircraft to “complete” responsiveto the subsequent tracked location of the aircraft being within thepolygon 310 and the subsequent tracked location of the aircraft mappingto the taxi pathway 308 and being unchanged for a particular period oftime. In such cases, the initial orientation can be retained.

Otherwise, a pushback status associated with the aircraft can be changedto “in-progress” indicating that the aircraft is still being pushedback. Stated differently, if the subsequent tracked location maps toeither the stand pathway 304 or the stand extended pathway 306, and/orif the location of the aircraft is changing (e.g., the aircraft ismoving), the initial orientation can be changed to indicate that theaircraft is still moving in reverse while being pushed back.

If the aircraft's movement is not determined to be outbound, the initialorientation can be retained, and the pushback status can be changed to“completed.” If the subsequent tracked location is outside the polygon310, the initial orientation can be retained, and the pushback statuscan be changed to “completed.”

FIG. 4 illustrates the rendering 400 of the portion of the airport wherean aircraft is tracked beginning at a third position 416 in accordancewith one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. In the exampleillustrated in FIG. 4 , a tracked path of an aircraft, indicated by aplurality of stars, is acquired at a third location 416. As above, thestars shown in FIG. 4 can represent different locations of the aircraftdetermined by a radar system over a period of time.

As shown in FIG. 4 , the third position 416 is located within (e.g.,maps to) the taxi pathway 408. Responsive to a determination that thethird position 416 of the aircraft is located within the taxi pathway408, embodiments of the present disclosure can apply a second set ofrules to determine whether a pushback of the aircraft is underway orwhether it is completed.

For instance, as they are tracked, the different locations along thetracked path can be stored in memory. In some embodiments, an initialorientation (e.g., a forward orientation) can be determined and/orassigned responsive to a determination that a distance traveled by theaircraft exceeds an initial distance threshold. In some embodiments, acheck can be performed to determine whether the aircraft is outbound. Ifthe aircraft is outbound, embodiments herein can determine whether asubsequent tracked location of the aircraft is within the polygon 410.

When an aircraft is acquired on the taxi pathway 408, it may beparticularly difficult to determine a pushback status because a numberof scenarios may be possible. For instance, the aircraft could betaxiing but has stopped, the aircraft could be undergoing a pushback, orthe aircraft could be taxiing at low velocity. Thus, a second set orrules and/or conditions can be applied when an aircraft is acquired onthe taxi pathway 408.

According to the second set of rules in some embodiments, adetermination can be made that a pushback of the aircraft is completeresponsive to a determination that the tracked location indicates avelocity associated with the aircraft that exceeds a velocity thresholdfor a particular period of time. According to the second set of rules insome embodiments, a determination can be made that a pushback of theaircraft is complete responsive to a determination that the trackedlocation moved outside the polygon 410.

For instance, a determination can be made that a pushback of theaircraft is complete responsive to a determination that the aircraft issubsequently located on the taxi pathway 408 and the subsequent trackedlocation is unchanged for a particular period of time. Such a timeperiod can be selected, for instance, to correspond to a length of timeneeded for a pushback vehicle to detach from the aircraft. Such a timeperiod can be selected, for instance, based on a type of the aircraft.Stated differently, embodiments herein can change a pushback statusassociated with the aircraft to “complete” responsive to the subsequenttracked location of the aircraft being within the polygon 410 and thesubsequent tracked location of the aircraft mapping to the taxi pathway408 and being unchanged for a particular period of time. In such cases,the initial orientation can be retained.

Further, according to the second set of rules, a determination can bemade that a pushback of the aircraft is complete responsive to adetermination that the tracked location indicates a velocity associatedwith the aircraft that exceeds a velocity threshold for a particularperiod of time. In such cases, embodiments herein can change a pushbackstatus associated with the aircraft to “complete” and the initialorientation can be retained

Otherwise, a pushback status associated with the aircraft can be changedto “in-progress” indicating that the aircraft is still being pushedback. Stated differently, if the subsequent tracked location maps toeither the stand pathway 404 or the stand extended pathway 406, and/orif the tracked location indicates a velocity associated with theaircraft that does not exceed the velocity threshold for the particularperiod of time, the initial orientation can be changed to an indicationthat orientation is unknown.

If the aircraft's movement is not determined to be outbound, the initialorientation can be retained, and the pushback status can be changed to“completed.” If the subsequent tracked location is outside the polygon410, the initial orientation can be retained, and the pushback statuscan be changed to “completed.”

In some embodiments, if a pushback of the aircraft is determined to becomplete, a notification can be provided indicating that the pushback iscomplete. In some embodiments, a determined orientation can be used toroute the aircraft through the airport. Stated differently, embodimentsof the present disclosure can include routing the aircraft to a targetlocation of the airport based on the determined orientation. Routing, asdescribed herein, includes the determination, provision, and/orexecution of a routing plan for an aircraft from one location in theairport to a different (e.g., target) location in the airport.

FIG. 5 illustrates a system 517 associated with determining aircraftorientation in accordance with one or more embodiments of the presentdisclosure. As shown in FIG. 5 , the system 517 can include a computingdevice 518 and a radar subsystem 524. The computing device 518 can be,for example, a laptop computer, a desktop computer, or a mobile device(e.g., a mobile phone, a personal digital assistant, etc.), among othertypes of computing devices.

As shown in FIG. 5 , the computing device 518 includes a memory 520 anda processor 522 coupled to the memory 520. The memory 520 can be anytype of storage medium that can be accessed by the processor 522 toperform various examples of the present disclosure. For example, thememory 520 can be a non-transitory computer-readable medium havingcomputer readable instructions (e.g., computer program instructions)stored thereon that are executable by processor 522 to determineaircraft orientation in accordance with one or more embodiments of thepresent disclosure.

The memory 520 can be volatile or nonvolatile memory. The memory 520 canalso be removable (e.g., portable) memory, or non-removable (e.g.,internal) memory. For example, the memory 520 can be random accessmemory (RAM) (e.g., dynamic random access memory (DRAM) and/or phasechange random access memory (PCRAM)), read-only memory (ROM) (e.g.,electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM) and/orcompact-disc read-only memory (CD-ROM)), flash memory, a laser disc, adigital versatile disc (DVD) or other optical disk storage, and/or amagnetic medium such as magnetic cassettes, tapes, or disks, among othertypes of memory.

Further, although the memory 520 is illustrated as being located in thecomputing device 518, embodiments of the present disclosure are not solimited. For example, the memory 520 can also be located internal toanother computing resource (e.g., enabling computer readableinstructions to be downloaded over the Internet or another wired orwireless connection). The computing device 518 can include hardware,firmware, and/or logic that can perform a particular function. As usedherein, “logic” is an alternative or additional processing resource toexecute the actions and/or functions, described herein, which includeshardware (e.g., various forms of transistor logic, application specificintegrated circuits (ASICs)), as opposed to computer executableinstructions (e.g., software, firmware) stored in memory and executableby a processing resource.

The computing device 518 can include a user interface 523. A user (e.g.,operator) of the computing device 518, such as, for instance, an airtraffic controller, can interact with the computing device 518 via theuser interface 523. For example, the user interface 523 can provide(e.g., display and/or present) information to the user of the computingdevice 518, and/or receive information from (e.g., input by) the user ofthe computing device 518. For instance, in some embodiments, the userinterface 523 can be a graphical user interface (GUI) that can include adisplay (e.g., a screen) that can provide and/or receive information toand/or from the user of the computing device 518. The display can be,for instance, a touch-screen (e.g., the GUI can include touch-screencapabilities). As an additional example, the user interface 523 caninclude a keyboard and/or mouse the user can use to input informationinto the computing device 518. Embodiments of the present disclosure,however, are not limited to a particular type(s) of user interface.

The radar subsystem 524 can track a location of an aircraft (e.g., agrounded aircraft) in an airport. The radar subsystem 524, as usedherein, is an object-detection system that uses electromagneticradiation waves to detect movement in an area. Example devices the radarsubsystem 524 can include a receiver (e.g., a dish, an antenna) and/or atransmitter. The transmitter can transmit pulses of electromagneticradiation waves (e.g., radar signals) in predetermined directions. Theelectromagnetic radiation waves can bounce off of an object (e.g., anaircraft) in their path. The object can return a part of the wave'senergy to the receiver. That is, the receiver can receive reflectedversions of the electromagnetic radiation waves. The receiver can belocated at the same site as the transmitter. The radar subsystem 524 caninclude one or more computing devices and/or controllers. In someembodiments, a computing device and/or controller of the radar subsystem524 can be analogous to the computing device 518, previously described.

Although specific embodiments have been illustrated and describedherein, those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that anyarrangement calculated to achieve the same techniques can be substitutedfor the specific embodiments shown. This disclosure is intended to coverany and all adaptations or variations of various embodiments of thedisclosure.

It is to be understood that the above description has been made in anillustrative fashion, and not a restrictive one. Combination of theabove embodiments, and other embodiments not specifically describedherein will be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reviewing theabove description.

The scope of the various embodiments of the disclosure includes anyother applications in which the above structures and methods are used.Therefore, the scope of various embodiments of the disclosure should bedetermined with reference to the appended claims, along with the fullrange of equivalents to which such claims are entitled.

In the foregoing Detailed Description, various features are groupedtogether in example embodiments illustrated in the figures for thepurpose of streamlining the disclosure. This method of disclosure is notto be interpreted as reflecting an intention that the embodiments of thedisclosure require more features than are expressly recited in eachclaim.

Rather, as the following claims reflect, inventive subject matter liesin less than all features of a single disclosed embodiment. Thus, thefollowing claims are hereby incorporated into the Detailed Description,with each claim standing on its own as a separate embodiment.

What is claimed:
 1. A non-transitory computer-readable medium havinginstructions stored thereon which, when executed by a processor, causethe processor to: determine a subsection of a rendering of a portion ofan airport, wherein the subsection is associated with a particular standof the airport, and wherein the subsection includes a plurality ofground travel pathways; determine a first subset of the plurality ofpathways, a second subset of the plurality of pathways, and a thirdsubset of the plurality of pathways; map a tracked location of agrounded aircraft to one of: the first subset of the plurality ofpathways, the second subset of the plurality of pathways, and the thirdsubset of the plurality of pathways; provide a notification that apushback of the aircraft is completed when a first set of conditions ismet responsive to a determination that the tracked location of theaircraft maps to the first or second subset of the plurality ofpathways; and provide the notification that the pushback of the aircraftis completed when a second set of conditions is met responsive to adetermination that the tracked location of the aircraft maps to thethird subset of the plurality of pathways.
 2. The medium of claim 1,wherein the rendering is an aerial rendering.
 3. The medium of claim 1,including instructions to determine the subsection without user input.4. The medium of claim 1, including instructions to determine thesubsection responsive to an input received via an interface.
 5. Themedium of claim 1, including instructions to determine that the secondset of conditions is met responsive to a determination that the trackedlocation of the aircraft is within the subsection of the rendering ofthe airport.
 6. The medium of claim 1, including instructions todetermine that the tracked location indicates a velocity associated withthe aircraft that exceeds a velocity threshold for a particular periodof time.
 7. The medium of claim 1, including instructions to determinean orientation of the aircraft based, at least in part on the mapping.8. The medium of claim 7, including instructions to route the aircraftto a target location of the airport based on the determined orientation.9. The medium of claim 7, including instructions to determine that thegrounded aircraft is outbound before mapping the tracked location. 10.The medium of claim 7, including instructions to map the trackedlocation of the grounded aircraft responsive to the grounded aircrafttraveling a distance exceeding a distance threshold.
 11. A system fordetermining aircraft orientation, comprising: a radar subsystemconfigured to track a location of a grounded aircraft in an airport; anda computing device configured to: determine a subsection of a renderingof an airport, wherein the subsection is associated with a particularstand of the airport, and wherein the subsection includes a plurality ofground travel pathways; determine a first subset of the plurality ofpathways, a second subset of the plurality of pathways, and a thirdsubset of the plurality of pathways; map the tracked location of theaircraft to one of: the first subset of the plurality of pathways, thesecond subset of the plurality of pathways, and the third subset of theplurality of pathways; provide a notification that a pushback of theaircraft is completed when a first set of conditions is met responsiveto a determination that the tracked location of the aircraft maps to thefirst or second subset of the plurality of pathways; and provide thenotification that the pushback of the aircraft is completed when asecond set of conditions is met responsive to a determination that thetracked location of the aircraft maps to the third subset of theplurality of pathways.
 12. The system of claim 11, wherein the renderingis a two-dimensional aerial rendering, and wherein the subsection is apolygon.
 13. The system of claim 11, wherein the computing device isconfigured to determine that the grounded aircraft is outbound beforemapping the tracked location.
 14. The system of claim 11, wherein thecomputing device is configured to determine that the grounded aircrafthas traveled a distance exceeding a distance threshold before mappingthe tracked location to any of the first subset of the plurality ofpathways, the second subset of the plurality of pathways, and the thirdsubset of the plurality of pathways.
 15. The system of claim 11, whereinthe computing device is configured to determine that the first set ofconditions is met responsive to a determination that: the trackedlocation of the aircraft is within the subsection of the rendering ofthe airport; and a subsequent tracked location of the aircraft maps tothe third subset of the plurality of pathways and is unchanged for aparticular period of time.
 16. The system of claim 11, wherein thecomputing device is configured to determine that the second set ofconditions is met responsive to a determination that: the trackedlocation of the aircraft is within the subsection of the rendering ofthe airport; and the tracked location indicates a velocity associatedwith the aircraft that exceeds a velocity threshold for a particularperiod of time.
 17. The system of claim 11, wherein the computing deviceis configured to determine that the second set of conditions is metresponsive to a determination that the tracked location moved outsidethe subsection of the rendering of the airport.
 18. A method fordetermining aircraft orientation, wherein the method includes: receive arendering of a portion of an airport; determining a subsection of therendering associated with a particular stand of the airport, wherein thesubsection includes a plurality of ground travel pathways, determining afirst subset of the plurality of pathways, a second subset of theplurality of pathways, and a third subset of the plurality of pathways;mapping the tracked location of the aircraft to one of: the first subsetof the plurality of pathways, the second subset of the plurality ofpathways, and the third subset of the plurality of pathways; determiningan orientation of the aircraft based, at least in part on the mapping;and routing the aircraft to a target location of the airport based onthe determined orientation.
 19. The method of claim 18, wherein themethod includes determining the subsection of the rendering based onhistorical pushback data associated with the particular stand.
 20. Themethod of claim 18, wherein the method includes determining thesubsection of the rendering based on a pushback limit associated withthe particular stand.